Six Friends and A Ghost
by HappinessAwaitingMe
Summary: This is the aftermath of The Curse of PCA. They thought they had put PCA's ghost to rest, but the frightening experiences haven't stopped. Zoey, Logan, Quinn, Lola, Chase and Michael have to stick together now and figure out a way to save themselves. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1

Ultimate Friendship

**Author's Note:** This turned out really different from what I was originally going to write. I think I'm going to write some more chapters and see where it goes. Thank you so much for reading! I'd love to know what you think.

After the excitement of the cancelled test wore off, Zoey, Chase, Michael, Lola, Logan and Quinn went quiet. They were all sitting in the sunshine with lunch trays that went untouched. Looking down, and occasionally stealing glances at each other, they were all trying to process what just happened to them.

"I never wanted to believe in that type of shit." Logan admits. "It feels like there is electricity in my blood, man." He shivered, remembering the green mist following them last night. Looking around at his friends, they all seemed to shrink into their seats a little farther. It was almost as if they were trying to hide from the eyes they all felt on their backs.

"It's just adrenaline. We've all been pumped with adrenaline for well over twelve hours. As our brains process what happened and realize it's over, we'll be coming down. It will feel very strange, and our bodies will need to recuperate, which is why we all need to eat." Quinn led by example, taking a bite of her veggie wrap. Zoey looked at her, frowning. When Quinn nodded at her, she took a bite of the pasta on her plate. Zoey urged Chase to take a bite of his food, and pretty soon everyone was munching slowly. "We'll also need to drink lots of water." She could tell her friends were really shaken by what had happened. She was too. Last night made her question many of the ideas she had about life and death. As a scientist, though, she was open to the new information.

After a bite of her salad, Lola piped up. "I just can't wrap my brain around how fucking insane that was. A green mist literally attacked us. We got chased around by a dead green mist!" She threw her hands in the air and shoved her salad away. Chase was grateful that someone else was as freaked as he was. "I don't even know how to feel about it. Maybe I'll just never hike again." Trying to lighten the mood, Michael replied, "Not if you keep eating fries like that, buddy."

After a small round of chuckles from the group, they went silent again. Everyone was silently eating their food, except Lola. Eventually, Zoey stood up. "I'm going to go back to the dorm. Today was way too exciting for me." Grabbing her backpack, she waved bye to her friends and hobbled slowly to her room on her sprained ankle. "We better help her." Lola and Quinn stood up and caught up with Zoey.

After a few minutes, Chase scooted back his chair and slung his bag over his shoulder. "I'm going to go to the library. Try to get some stuff done. Later, guys." As he walked off, Michael and Logan looked at each other. "So—"

Logan interrupted Michael: "Man, I can't be alone right now. I'm the one who disturbed a fucking dead guy. I'm really sorry, but let's just go shoot hoops or something." Logan was pleading. Even though he was a jerk most of the time, Michael knew Logan was really disturbed over what happened. He relented, and they headed to the basketball court.

After two hours of fruitless studying, Chase slammed his book closed and groaned. Leaning his head back until it touched the chair he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Every time he tried to look at a page, all he could see was that green mist and feel the terror of him and all his friends being in danger. It was, hands down, the most unbelievable thing that has ever happened to him. He didn't even believe in ghosts, but he spent all of last night running from one.

Looking around, he realized there was no one left in the library. There weren't many people around two hours ago, but now he didn't see anyone. He got up and took a walk around the floor of the library. There was no one in the study cubbies and no one roaming the shelves looking for research. It was strange because mid-terms were coming up, and he knew that everyone at PCA was slammed with assignments. As he walked back to his chair, he did a double take. His book was open, highlighter lying in the middle waiting to be picked up. He could have sworn he closed his book before he got up. Feeling a slight breeze pick up the ends of his curly hair and push them around his neck, he scurried to get his supplies packed up. "I'm getting the fuck out of here," he said out loud, mostly just to hear a familiar noise in the heavy silence.

Sitting on the couch, Zoey looked up at Lola and Quinn for the one hundredth time since she opened up her laptop to send e-mails to her parents and grandparents. She knew the e-mails were short, but she couldn't concentrate right now. Setting her laptop down on the table, she stretched her arms above her head and leaned back. The sunlight streaming through their windows made the room pleasantly warm, but Zoey couldn't erase the chill that settled over her bones. "I'm going to go take a shower. If you dusted me off, you could make a sand castle."

"What about your ankle?" Quinn didn't want Zoey getting hurt worse.

"Tell you what, if I'm not back in fifteen minutes, come check on me." Zoey placated.

As Zoey grabbed her towel and shower caddy, Lola stage-whispered "As if she could ever take a shower in fifteen minutes." Lola and Quinn giggled. "I should probably get cleaned up too. We did a lot of running around last night." She went over to the closet and stripped out of her clothes. Wrapping herself in a towel, she threw her dirty clothes in a hamper and grabbed her stuff. "I'll make sure Zoey doesn't fall or anything. Don't look so stressed." Quinn looked up and smiled as Lola shut the door. Quinn turned to her journal and wrote frantically about what had happened in the past eighteen hours. She wanted to document everything in case she ever needed the information in the future, including the formula for the ghost balls. Her hand traveled across the page, but she froze. She turned her head slowly and saw a fog settle over the window, making the room darker. She told herself it was a trick of the light, but the unease in her stomach made it clear she wasn't safe being alone. "I'll go take a shower too, I think." She gulped, grabbed her shower caddy, and ran.

Chase found Logan and Michael half-heartedly playing two-on-two basketball. Walking up, he called out "Are you both trying to lose?" The two looked up at their friend and Logan let the ball drop from his hands.

"Thought you were studying," Michael called back. Like his friends, he felt almost slimy. Something unnatural happened to them last night. He smiled at his friend anyway, and went to meet him at the bench. Logan followed behind and put the ball back on the rack. "It was much too academic in there. I needed to feel some slack before I turned into a nerd."

"Too late," Logan joked. He was trying really hard to shake off his discomfort, but the buzz was still in his veins. All three sat on the bench. Logan leaned back, Michael slouched, and Chase put his elbows on his knees and placed his head in his hands. "Be serious, Chase. Are you as fucked up over this as I am?" Chase looked up at Logan and stared straight into his face, reading the fear there.

"Yeah, man. I feel like my brain has disconnected from my body. I'm waiting to wake up from this shitty nightmare. And I swear, there was some_thing_ in that library with me." Chase hid his trembling hands between his knees.

"Maybe it's just what Quinn said, dude. Have you drank any water since lunch?" Michael asked. "Take my water bottle. Your brain is probably just still on the frizz from all the excitement." Michael handed Chase his bottle and his friend took a long drink.

"Let's just go back to the room. We can watch a movie or something." As they started to get up, all three friends felt the long fingers caress down their shoulder to their hands. Looking frantically at each other, they picked up their stuff and hurried back to where they thought they would feel safe.

Back in the room, Lola was drying out her hair, Quinn was pulling on some sweat pants and a t shirt, and Zoey was pulling her hair into a bun on the top of her head. Quinn kept glancing at the window, expecting it to grow darker. Noticing her jumpiness, Lola went over to Quinn. "Are you alright? You're definitely not here in this room with us." Quinn turned around slowly, not looking at her friend.

"I thought I saw something earlier, that's all. I guess the adrenaline is still working through my system." Quinn was still trying to explain the earlier event away.

"Quinn, I don't think this is adrenaline anymore. On my way to the bathroom, something shot straight past me, like a black mist. It ruffled my fucking hair. That's how fast it was," Zoey confessed. She rubbed her hands on her arms at the thought.

Lola snarled at them both. "This isn't even remotely funny. You don't play around with this shit. We buried the goddamn necklace again. There is nothing going on! You all are psyching yourselves out. Get over it." Lola hugged over and sat on the couch. At her burst of anger, the room seemed to roar in her ears. The sound came on so fast and so loud, she covered her ears and bent over. It lasted only a few seconds, and then it was silent again. Zoey and Quinn were staring at her, and she knew they didn't hear it.

"You still don't believe something is here? I'm not a freaking ghost hunter, but this is not normal!" Zoey was screaming now. She was hysterical.

"Let's go see the boys. At least if we're with them, they'll believe us if we tell them what's happening." Quinn said this to get her roommates to agree, but really she wanted to feel the boys' confidence, knowing it would make her feel stronger. Lola and Zoey nodded at her. Picking up their keys, they hurried over to the boys' dorm.

As Chase, Michael and Logan walked up the stairs and down the hallway to their room, they spotted three girls sitting on the floor next to their door. Lola was the first to notice them and stood up to greet them. "Hey guys. We were hoping it would be cool if we hung out here."

"Of course. Is there something wrong?" Michael was concerned for his friends, especially after what he experienced.

"Yes!" Zoey exclaimed, pushing herself off the floor and getting in Michael's face. "We're being fucking tormented by a ghost!" She gasped and fell back against the wall. Chase moved up to her and put his hands on her arms. "It's gonna be okay, Zo. It's been weird for us, too. Come inside." Zoey leaned into her friend and let him lead her inside. He set her down on the edge of his bed and got her some water. Logan sat down on the couch closest to the bunk bed, Quinn next to him, Lola next to her, and Michael on the bean bag chair in front of her legs.

Once they had swapped stories, the six friends felt better and worse at the same time. No one had any idea what this meant for them. As night fell, the boys turned on all the lights they could. Quinn was still staring at the window from time to time, so Logan pulled the curtains shut.

Cocooned in the room, for the first time that day the friends started to relax. They weren't alone in their experiences or their fear. It was a great comfort in the face of something so unknown. By eleven pm, the forty eight hours spent awake became too much. Chase sat back on the pillows on his bed, with Zoey still under his arm. She started to lean against him and snuggle her head into his chest. He pulled a blanket over the two of them, leaned his head on hers and tucked his arms around her. Michael was snoring in the bean bag chair, with his head on the couch next to Lola's knee. Lola's head was on Quinn's thigh, who was pushed up against Logan. Logan had a pillow under his head and his arm across the back of the couch. As he started to drift, his arm slid off the back of the couch and his hand settled on Quinn's hip.

This group of friends didn't know what was going to happen tomorrow when they woke up, but for right now, they could lean on each other. Until then, the light was keeping the darkness at bay.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Logan's head slipped off his pillow and he jerked awake. He was disoriented and couldn't make out details in the dark. He looked over and noticed Quinn leaning against him; his arm was around her. He was surprised, but he didn't mind. He didn't want to wake her, or anyone else, up; he tightened his arm around Quinn and laid his head back down.

Lola felt Logan shift and sat up in a daze. She looked around the room, squinting in the dark. She really had to pee. Stepping over a snoring Michael, she made her way to the door. The guest bathroom was in the lounge, but she didn't want to walk all the way down there by herself in the dark. Knowing it was late, she assumed no one would notice her slip into the guys' bathroom. She hurried into a stall and slammed the door. As she stepped out, Lola looked over both shoulders making sure no one was there to bust her. Washing her hands quickly, she began to feel very nervous. Only half the lights stay on at night, and there were too many shadows in the corner of her eyes. She wiped her hands down the sides of her cotton leggings and headed back to the room. In the hallway, Lola stopped dead in her tracks. Hovering over the door to Chase, Michael and Logan's room, a black mist hung in the air. Lola gasped and took a step back. At the noise, the black mist seemed to turn and look right into her eyes. The mist over her eyes grew darker and darker, until she could see nothing. Trying to run backwards away from the suffocating entity, she tripped. When she hit the ground, light flew into her eyes again. Scrambling off the floor, Lola ran into the boys' room and slammed the door. Michael jumped at the sound.

"Yo, man. What the hell?" He was breathing hard from being startled. He shifted on the bean bag chair until he was sitting up straight. "What the fuck are you doing? It's like two in the goddamn morning."

"I'm sorry! I had to pee. And I… I got startled, being all alone. I guess I'm still freaked about everything that's been going on." She didn't want to admit that she felt something was putting them in danger. As she passed him, he noticed her hands trembling.

"It's alright, Lola. Sit down." He turned to face her and took her hands. "I know it's some crazy shit. Next time you gotta get up, just wake me up and I'll come with you." He rubbed her hands soothingly. She nodded at him and leaned back into the couch, removing her hands from his. "Why don't you go hop in my bed? It'll be more comfortable for you."

"Thanks Michael." She stepped quietly over to the bunk bed and climbed on top. Covering herself with a blanket, she laid down on her side to face the room. But she couldn't close her eyes. The thought of being sightless again made her stomach turn. She stared out into the room, trying not to see faces in the shadows.

As the moon suffered its last moments as guardian, the sky did not lighten. It was as if a parasite had settled in the clouds over the school, sucking all the light out of the day before it could burn past the clouds. The six friends holed up in room 148 of Maxwell Hall had not yet begun to stir. Their minds were blessing them with a few more hours of dreams after the past few days. As the campus began to move, the stifled feeling over campus was avoided by no one. Each person could sense the electricity in the air and the tension growing in their bodies. Students were sooner to snap at their friends and teachers; teachers were gruff in their lessons. The campus shed its usual cheery atmosphere; as if the clouds settled on each individual soul.

In room 148, Chase began to stir. He released Zoey from his embrace and stretched. He set his feet on the floor and almost jerked them back up. The floor was frozen. Finding some socks, he pulled them onto his feet and retrieved a water bottle from the fridge. Taking a deep drink, he noticed the time. It was 10:57! He knew the alarms were always set to the same time, since all three roommates woke up at 7 am every day for class. They were over four hours late to class. He first shook Michael's shoulder and then tossed a pillow at Quinn and Logan. As all three groaned awake, he shook Lola and Zoey. "Guys, we're four hours late to class! Get up!"

Quinn and Logan could not focus on Chase's words. As Quinn shifted she noticed Logan's warmth around her body and saw his arms around her. She looked up at him as he looked down at her. He smiled slightly, and she blushed. She sat up straight, but yelped as she put her feet on the floor. Falling back onto Logan's chest, she exclaimed "Why is the floor so fucking cold? The goddamn boiler is, like, under the room two doors over." She shivered and Logan rubbed her arms and pulled her close. Lola and Zoey looked over at Chase in confusion.

"What happened, Chase? Why didn't the alarms go off? And Quinn is right; it's fucking freezing in here." She picked up one of Chase's sweatshirts off the ground and slipped it on over her t shirt. "I had a big assignment due in English today. Fuck."

"I don't know, Zo. We never turn off the alarms." Chase shook his head in disbelief.

"Chase is right. The alarm is set to go off every day, and it's loud. We are never late." Michael backed up his roommate, though he was also distracted by the temperature in the room. "Lola, did you do anything to the alarm last night?"

"Last night? What did you do last night?" Logan accused.

"I went to the bathroom, jesus christ. Don't blow a fuse, Logan." She sneered at him, though she thought it was way too early to start with him. "And no, I didn't touch the fucking alarm clock. Why would I? I'm late enough. I'm probably going to get detention for this." She started climbing down the bunk bed, but was careful to step on a pair of sweatpants strewn on the floor to avoid the cold she already felt on her arms.

"I gotta go. I have to go talk to my English teacher." In Chase's purple sweatshirt, Zoey grabbed her shoes and went to go open the door, wincing at the sharp cold on her feet. As she turned the doorknob, the door didn't budge. She pulled on the door, putting all her body behind it, but the door wouldn't open. "Would one of you please open your freakish door?" She crossed her arms and jutted out her hip as Michael got up and gently pushed her out of the way.

"You're just not pulling hard enough." He grasped the doorknob with both hands, but the door wouldn't move for him either. He put his foot up on the wall and turned the door knob, but the door still didn't move. Releasing Quinn, Logan strode over to the door and yanked on the door knob. The only result was a groaning sound from the hinges.

Lola stomped over, madder than a bull in a hen house. "Are you serious? This isn't funny!"

"Lola, this isn't funny to us either. This isn't some sort of joke. Grow up," Zoey snapped at her. Fuming, Lola shoved Logan out of the way and pulled with all her weight on the door. When it would not budge for her, she hit it with both her fists and screamed. "Quinn, is there any way you can jimmy this door?" Quinn got up and examined the doorknob.

"Maybe it's just jammed. Logan, give me your credit card. I'll try to reset the lock." Handing her the credit card, Logan looked a little worried for the fate of his life preserver. Quinn slipped the card through the crack in the door and maneuvered until it lined up. Turning the lock, the credit card kept the lock from sliding into its space. Quickly flipping the lock back, Quinn slid the credit card down in an attempt to unstick the doorknob. Seeing the mechanism catch back, Quinn let out an excited "Ha," and pulled on the door. She pulled, expecting the door to open. Instead, her hand slipped off the door knob and she fell backward onto the floor.

Staring at the door in disbelief, Quinn sat up on her elbows. "The door should open…" Logan took another shot at the door. Though it wiggled in the frame, it did not open. At yet another failed attempt, Lola flopped onto the floor next to Quinn and started to cry. Kneeling next to her, Zoey stroked her hair. "Lola, we'll get the door open. It's just being stupid. The cold probably screwed with the hinges or something."

"It's not that," Lola sobbed. "Last night, when I went to the bathroom… there was something. Something, I don't know, fucking hovering over the door. It was black. And then…And then it came over my eyes. I couldn't see! What if that thing is keeping us in here?" She broke down and hid her face in her arms. Her five friends looked around at each other, recalling their own experiences from the day before. Was she right? Was something following them, bent against them for some reason?

Chase paced across the room. "Why don't we call Dustin? He can try to open the door from the outside?"

"I'm not dragging my brother into this crazy mess. What if freaky shit starts happening to him too?" Chase had to agree with her. He wouldn't want this to happen to anyone else.

"Let's try the window," Quinn suggested. "Maybe someone can come around and open the door." Quinn walked over and threw open the curtains. Seeing the sky outside, her eyes go wide. Zoey, Chase, Michael and Logan gather around staring out the window. The dark sky drenched the world in black and grey. Drained of its color, the campus was frightening. It was startlingly empty. There were no students milling to class or laughing over lunch or coffee.

"Where the fuck did everybody go?" Logan yelled. "This isn't fucking normal. I've gone to school here for six years, and I have never seen weather like this." He stormed over and sat next to Lola. Michael heaved a big sigh. "Let's try to open the window. I'll go around. Give me the key." Chase handed him the key and Quinn grabbed the window. Pulling it open, it was straining against her. "Chase, come help me. This window doesn't want to stay open." With both Chase and Quinn holding the window, Michael climbed over the sill and landed on the ground outside. As soon as he was clear of the window, Chase and Quinn let go and it slammed shut on its own with a bang.

A bang came on the door, startling everyone inside. "Hey! Back up from the door!" Michael yelled from outside. Hearing the key turn, the door locked and unlocked and Michael pushed on the door. Hearing it scrape against the frame, there was progress. "I'm gonna pull the same time you push, Michael!" Zoey shouted. She grasped the doorknob with both hands, and yelled "Now!"

Inexplicably, the door shook loose moments before Zoey shouted. Michael came barreling through the door as it hit Zoey in the face. She fell back and hit her head on the Logan's bedframe. "Zo!" Chase ran over to her to make sure she was okay. "Don't let the door close, man!" Michael stepped in front of the door and put his back on it.

Zoey was going to have a nasty bruise and a pounding headache, but she could sit up. Chase grabbed his water bottle and she sipped. "We're going to get dressed, and then let's go to your room and get you dressed. We're going to stay together. I don't know what the fuck's going on, but I don't think we're safe." Zoey was glad someone else was taking charge this time; she was frightened.

As the girls got dressed, the boys propped the door open and stood facing the hallway. On the way over, the discovered the campus was not empty. The few students that were outside, however, were empty. Looking into their faces, there was no emotion. It was PCA's version of Night of the Living Dead.

"What are we going to do now?" Zoey asked. "Where do we start?"

"Research, of course," Quinn answered.

"Uhm. I actually think I have something that might be more helpful." Lola admitted. "Do you remember when I met you guys and I pretended to talk to the dead? Well, my grandmother actually taught me how to do that. I agree with Chase. Something is off here, and it all started when we went to Red Stone Gulch and took that necklace. I think we should take our chances and try to hold a séance. I know it sounds crazy, but my grandmother believed that in order to solve a problem, you have to talk about it. Let's talk to Charles Galloway. Or whoever might be harassing us."

"Is that safe?" Logan asked.

"This ghost locked us in a room and knocked Zoey and Michael around. We're not safe now." She answered.

Quinn took a step toward Lola. "What do we need?"

**A/N: I know a whole lot didn't happen in this chapter, but I'm just trying to build up the suspense a little. Hang on to the next chapter! Shit's going down. Let me know what you think **


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

**A/N: I know nothing about gypsies or spells. I made up Lola's history and I pulled the spell off the internet and tweaked it a little. Also, this chapter is kind of graphic.**

**I want to give a shout out to Only Sarah and Moon Stars and Fast Cars for your encouragement. **

**Thanks for keeping up with my story! I am always happy to hear what you think **

Night fell, and the six friends gathered under a tree at the edge of campus. The day had been spent gathering candles, incense, blankets, wool and cardboard for the spell Lola's grandmother taught her.

"Lola, how did your grandma get into this stuff?" Michael asked, voice shaking. He grew up superstitious, believing the only world humans were meant to be involved in was their own realm.

"My mother's side of the family comes from a long line of gypsies. Gypsies believe in a more ethereal realm that exists parallel to our own universe. Death is what happens when a soul passes from this realm to the next. My grandmother's grandmother grew up in a gypsy camp. She was very gifted when it came to feeling the boundary between realms. She had a much better perception of when spirits were trying to communicate than even many gypsies. She passed down her knowledge only through the females in her line. My grandmother was also gifted, as is my mother. But my mother has separated herself from that side of her family. My dad, though, grew up without a mother, and grew very close to my grandmother when he married my mom. When I was a child, my grandmother would teach me what she knew. Only the simple stuff though. She never taught me anything dangerous. She always said she suspected I was gifted too. I guess we'll find out." Lola shrugged her shoulders and started setting up.

Spreading out the blanket, she gestured for all of her friends to sit down in a circle. Placing a candle in between each of them, they burned bright in the darkness. They had prepared a talking board. On a piece of cardboard, they had drawn a large red circle, with the words "yes," "no," "maybe" and "I don't know" written around. Placing a knife in the middle of the board, it was meant to act like a compass needle. Earlier, they twined together sweet grass and sage. Lola tied them to the branches of the trees and lit them. The slow burn let out a sweet smell, encircling the group. It was meant to purify the space and prevent any evil spirits from breaking the boundary.

Lola sat down at the head of the circle, her back against the tree trunk. "We must hold hands. Whatever you do, don't let go. Whatever answers our call needs to remain inside the circle. Are you all ready?" Logan gripped Quinn's hand, and Quinn twined her fingers with Lola. Lola held Zoey's hand, who held tight to Chase. Michael was holding Logan and Chase's hand, directly across the circle from Lola. "Everyone must say 'I summon the spirit of Charles Galloway' together, three times. Take a deep breath."

"I summon the spirit of Charles Galloway."  
>"I summon the spirit of Charles Galloway."<p>

"I summon the spirit of Charles Galloway."

Lola closed her eyes; her grandmother always said she needed to block out sight when trying to touch the realm. Sight is the most easily deceived sense, and spirits can more easily manipulate sound, smell and touch than they can manifest visibly.

The wind picked up on her back, but as Zoey looked around she noticed the candles were not flickering at all. She couldn't even feel any wind on her face. Quinn's hair, the longest by far, was spilled across her shoulders untouched by the wind she felt. Zoey turned to ask Chase if he felt anything, but his eyes were closed and his face was turned up to the sky. She nudged him with her elbow; "Chase…" she whispered. Chase hissed at her, "What, Zoey?" and he turned his eyes full force on her. Zoey jumped back. Chase's eyes were black like the night around them. She could see her frightened expression reflected in those black orbs. "Ya know, Zoey, I'm really sick of you. You walk around like everyone's fucking savior. Do you know how you've _RUINED MY LIFE ZOEY BROOKS_?" Screaming at her, he wouldn't let her pull away. He grabbed her wrist painfully and flung her backward onto the grass. He held her down by her wrists, digging his nails in, and climbed on top of her. He leaned down, running his nose along her neck as if to give her a kiss. Instead, she felt his teeth sink into her neck and the blood run into her hair and pool under her arm. When she screamed, he only bit down harder.

Hearing Zoey scream, Michael flinched in sheer terror. Looking around at his friends, all of their faces were twisted in grotesque pain. Zoey and Chase fell over on to each other and they were writhing in on the grass; their spines were twisting their bodies in sickening shapes. He followed the circle and saw Lola's face in her hands. "Lola, what's wrong?" he screamed. She looked up at him, mouth gaping. Blood was running down from her empty eye sockets and into her open mouth, spilling down her chin. She fell over, choking and grasping at her throat. Quinn was staring at Logan, her face contorting with anger. As Logan reached for her hand, Quinn slapped him hard enough to leave three long gashes from his chin to the corner of his right eye. She slapped him with her other hand and blood spurted onto her face. He was staring into a scene straight from a horror movie. Quinn continued to rake her claw-like nails down Logan's body, tearing his clothes and pulling off strips of bloody skin. She was covering herself in blood and threw her head back and laughed. Michael tried to leap at Quinn, but he felt himself rooted to the spot. He could not stop the sickening events happening around him; gravity was tying him to the terror. He closed his eyes in defeat.

Lola, trying to concentrate on the realm touching ours, felt Zoey tug away from the circle. "Zoey, you can't break the circle. Chase, hold her tight." Feeling the tension in her grip, she opened her eyes to comfort her. Blackness greeted her. Flinging her head around, she was assaulted by horrifying nothingness. A burn started in her eyes. Reaching up to stop the pain, she clawed at her eyes. A sickening warm sticky wetness covered her hands as the pain only got stronger. She could feel something run down her face and into her open mouth. Tasting the coppery substance, she knew it was blood. It was filling her mouth as it poured out of her eyes. Hearing Michael scream at her, she tried to cry for help but the blood was overflowing in her mouth. Trying to spit it out, she turned her head to the grass. Her body convulsed, trying to expel the blood. She fell onto her side, scratching her throat as the last resort. More blood covered her fingers and she felt her mind slow down as her lungs filled with her own blood.

Quinn felt a tiny hum in her veins feeling Logan's fingers curled around hers. Despite the activity, the candles, the tree, and the suspense made Quinn feel fluttery around Logan. She turned to look at him, but he was looking down at their intertwined hands. Thinking he was feeling the same anticipation she did, she smiled. He looked up at her, and he did not mirror her feelings. He looked at her with disgust, and ripped his hand away. "Quinn, don't act like you actually have a chance with me. I'm Logan fucking Reese. I would never date a _spaz_ like you. I might fuck you, sure. We all know you need it. But I don't think I could stand to spend more time with you than I already do." Logan sneered at her, and tears pricked her eyes. She looked away from him so he wouldn't see her cry. He roughly grabbed her chin and pulled her face up to his. "Listen to me Quinn." He leaned to whisper in her ear. "Your shitty joke of a relationship with Mark is the best you have to look forward to. You are a freak. Zoey and Lola only hang out with you because you're a clingy bitch and they don't want to make themselves look bad. They can't be the perfect girls on campus without a dorky ugly friend to make them look great in comparison. The only reason we hang out with you is because we feel sorry for you." He shoved her away from him. In complete rage, she swung with all her might. She slapped him hard across the face, hard enough to leave gashes. Anger still swimming inside her, she slapped him with her other hand, blood covering her nails and squirting onto her face. Instead of looking angry, he turned away from her and started laughing with Michael, who didn't even move an inch at what he just saw.

Hearing Quinn's breath hitch, Logan tried to calm her. "Stay away from me! I can't believe I ever let myself entertain the thought of liking you!" She pushed herself away from the circle and ran off into the darkness. Looking away from where she retreated into the darkness, feeling ashamed, Lola got into his face. "Logan Reese, be serious. What did you think was going to happen with that girl? That she would fall for you and all your flaws like some low budget piece of shit indie film? This is real life, Logan. She knows, and everyone knows, that you are pathetic. You are a pathetic superficial little slut. Your father must be ashamed of you. That's why he sent you off to boarding school nine months of the year and paid nannies to keep you out of his life. These 'friends' only stroke your ego for my money in your pocket. Give up your wet dreams about Quinn the science freak stroking your tiny dick. She would never stoop that low. Look at yourself, for fucksake." Lola held a mirror up to his face and Logan could barely stomach what he saw. He knew he was an attractive guy, but that was not what he saw in the mirror. His skin was a pale grey, stretched across his body like leather. His body was hairless, with large splotches all over where he had ripped at his own flesh. His teeth were all fangs, sharp like the insults he hurled at people, cutting them deep. He had no eyelids and his eyes were shallow; there was no emotion to give them depth. He stared unblinking into his own soul, disgusted by himself. He hit the mirror with his fists, shattering the mirror. Shards of glass flew at him and gouged into his body. The pain was a relief from having to face himself.

Chase was jazzed to be holding Zoey's hand. And to be the one she picked to sit next to. Sometimes he wasn't sure how much he meant to her, but the way she gripped his hand tight told him that she felt safe with him around. He wasn't sure if he would ever be able to love the Zoey the way he wished he could, but knowing she loved him too was enough for now. He smiled at her, and she smiled back at her. To his chagrin, she started laughing. It was a small laugh at first, but it only got more robust. "Zo, what's so funny? We're trying to summon a freakin' ghost." He chuckled. "Oh my god. I'm sorry Chase. The look on your face got me. I don't think you realize how goddamn obvious you are. It's like you honestly believe I can't tell how obsessed you are with me. Honestly, it would be cute if it wasn't so fucking pathetic. That little bitch Rebecca? She didn't fool me for a minute. You want me, Chase. You dream about me at night and think about me when you take care of yourself in the morning. Seriously though, I could never be with you. You're so _sensitive. _Like I need you to hold my hand through everything. You're just a scrawny little boy. Isn't that right, Logan?" Logan looked at Zoey with lust in his eyes and winked at her. "Logan, though, is a man. He really knows how to make a girl feel good." Getting into his face, she whispered "I think you know what I mean," and winked. She turned toward Logan, and he kissed her rough. He slid his hand down her waist and lifted her shirt so he could feel her tan skin. Pushing her onto the blanket, he spread her legs with his knee and kissed down her neck. Zoey moaned for him, and Chase could only stare as he felt his heart shatter. Michael came over to him and put his arm around his shoulder. "It's for the best man. She needed someone who could really fuck her, ya know? Let me put you out of your misery." Michael grabbed the knife that had slid to the edge of the blanket, turned it over in his fingers and stabbed Chase straight through the chest. Chase could feel the knife tear through him. But he was glad. He couldn't watch anymore.

_You cannot escape the darkest fears of your own souls._

_I'm here to stay inside each and every one of you, boys and girls._

**A/N: **I was not planning on ending it there, but I like it. I guess you'll just have to keep reading ;)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_You cannot escape the darkest fears of your own souls._

_I'm here to stay inside each and every one of you, boys and girls._

This terrible voice echoed through their battered minds. Their heart rates calmed as they looked around to find their nightmares unmasked. Quinn starts crying first and Logan grabs her and holds her tight. Zoey looks at Chase and he kisses her. Lola crawls over to Michael to be held too.

"In the most scientific way possible, I'm going to ask what just happened." Quinn took a deep breath. "_What the fuck just happened?" _

Everyone was staring daggers at Lola, and she shrinks back into Michael's chest a little more. "I had no idea that would happen. I'm not even sure what happened! I was… I was dying. I could feel the blood down my throat. I was drowning in my own blood." She shuddered. The scariest thought was that something could make her live through her own death.

Cradling Zoey's face, Chase looked deep into his best friend's eyes. "We all saw something different, didn't we? What has the power to manipulate us like that?" He was afraid to even blink. The vision had left scars behind his eyelids.

"Lola! What the fuck did you do to us? Did you know this was dangerous?" Logan was screaming at her, face red and angry.

"No! Nothing like that has ever happened to me. I told you, my grandmother never taught me anything dangerous. All I can say is that whatever came through is really strong." Lola knew something was terribly wrong. She didn't want to say it to her friends, but the manipulation suggested something far worse than a ghost, something much more powerful. Her grandmother died two years ago, on July 13th, but maybe if she called her mother she could ask her about it. Lola had the natural connection to the realm, but not nearly the amount of practice communing with it that her mother had. She only hoped her mother would step back into this life for the sake of her daughter.

* * *

><p>Lola paced back in her dorm, five pairs of eyes trained on her. "Could you please stop fucking staring? I told you I'm going to try to fix this," she snapped. Zoey looked down, her lip quivering. "I'm sorry, Zo. I feel so responsible. And I'm just really scared." She knelt next to her friend and patted her knee.<p>

"We're all scared, Lola. But right now your mom is the best shot we have. Call her." Michael coaxed her friend. Lola was nervous; her mother had warned her to stay away from "grandmother's nonsense" when she was young. She didn't know what she brought down upon herself and her friends, but she hoped her mother wouldn't refuse her request. Her mother was notorious for the fix-it-yourself mentality.

Hand trembling, she dialed her mother's cell phone. It rang four times and then a groggy voice answered. "Lola, baby? It's almost midnight. You better have a good reason for calling this late." Her daughter's hesitation worried her. "Baby, are you okay? You're scaring me."

"Mama. My friends and I…something's been happening to us. I really need your help right now." Lola's voice shook with fear.

"Of course, baby. What is it?" Her voice was smooth as honey, pouring out concern on her daughter's ears.

"Somethin's been messin' with us. A ghost or somethin' mama. It's been following us and touching us. It locked us in a room, mama! We tried using the summoning grandma taught us… I know you always told me to stay away from what grandma taught me, but I was trying to help. We didn't know what it wanted from us." She paused and gulped. "During the spell, it attacked us. Each of us, individually. We had these nightmares or visions or something. And then it talked to us. It said: 'You cannot escape the darkest fears of your own souls. I'm here to inside each and every one of you.' Grandma never taught me about this, mama."

Her mother gasped on the other end. "Oh my goodness, baby. I wish you would have called me before you tried to commune with this. Did you at least burn some sage?"

"Yes, mama. But it didn't appear to do a damn thing. What do we do? This thing is harassing us." Lola was frustrated. She would never forget to take precautions.

"Put me on speaker phone, baby. I want your friends to hear this." When Lola sat her phone on the desk, her friends gathered around. "I don't know if any of you have ever communed with other realms, but there are certain things about it that you must know. Now I don't want to be stepping on anyone's beliefs, but you all have mixed yourselves up into something new. You have to open your mind. First of all, every living thing on this earth has a soul. This realm, our realm, is much more physical than others. Our bodies are simply the physical vessels our souls are in. While we remain firmly planted in this realm, our souls stay intact. There are many realms on this earth, but the realm of spirits is the most closely related to ours. The realm of the spirits is simply where those souls go when their vessels have expired. They can't stay in our realm because a soul is not strong enough to hold itself here without a vessel. That is why it's so easy to reach. They are no different from us, except they can't be experienced physically. Opening yourself up to another realm pulls at your soul; we are simply reaching to commune with other souls. It is the natural desire of souls to commune with each other. We crave connection, no matter what state we may be in. Secondly, it is always important to proceed cautiously when connecting with the spirit realm. Souls can very easily read other souls, and everything we are is contained in our souls. All our memories and feelings and deepest desires and our darkest fears are what makes up our soul. Sometimes, a soul is made up of too much darkness. And it is very hard for a soul to battle itself. Over time, it will become desperate for light to break up the darkness. But if it doesn't have enough, it will seek it out from other souls. Since souls in our realm are experiencing emotions and desires and fears the most directly, the light and dark within our souls is much more active and much more powerful. Unfortunately, because the battle within is so strong, it is also easier to reach and much easier to feed off of. Dark souls will be more attracted to this realm, and will be waiting for a moment to jump the realms to feed off this energy." Lola's mother paused. There was some shuffling heard on the other end and the slam of a door. "It's always a little dangerous when souls wander. And when dark souls wander and find light to feed off of, they have to replace that light with something. Everything in this world, and in every realm, is equal. When something is taken, something must be given. And when something is given, something must be taken. The world thrives on balance. When souls are out of balance, they will take light from you and give you dark."

Quinn shifted in her seat. She was clearly the most skeptical. "But how can a soul directly manipulate that darkness? We all saw our deepest fears. How would a soul know what those are?"

"I have to admit, that's why I'm worried. Usually an imbalance is like a sickness, and it's something that you can control. You can feel sad or angry or depressed, but when you let light back in, balance slowly returns. This soul must be incredibly dark. Like it's concentrated. The effect was so strong, it… fueled your fears. It made them powerful enough to manifest themselves into your own mind. I've never known anyone to experience it. Add on the fact that it happened to all six of you at once means it's much more powerful than most spirits. Whatever this person went through must have been a special kind of hell." Lola's mother sighed and popped open a can of something.

"How did you encounter this spirit in the first place?" The judgment was clear in her voice.

Lola bit her lip, not wanting to get in trouble with her mom. Zoey spoke up. "Well, all of us went hiking up to this place called Red Stone Gulch really close to PCA. There's a legend that fifty years ago, a student named Charles Galloway went insane and ran away to Red Stone Gulch. When we went up there, we found a necklace. Instead of leaving it there, we took it with us. This green mist chased us around all night and we hiked up again the next morning to put the necklace back. We thought it was over, Ms. Martinez. But we're still being, I don't know, followed by something."

"Here's what I want you to do: go back to Red Stone Gulch. You need to know if these two spirits are the same. But it's important that you _do not provoke the spirits._ You cannot disrespect a spirit; it will only end badly. I'm going to do some research and get back to you. You kids be safe. I love you, Lola."

"I love you too, mama." With that, she hung up the phone. It was past one by now.

"Let's just get some sleep. We can't hike up to the gulch right now anyway" Chase started to close the curtains and Michael pulled some blankets out from the closet.

"Let's just share, guys. I'm too frightened to sleep alone anyway. Michael, come up here with me." Lola beckoned for him and he climbed up the ladder after her. Settling in beside her, she brought his arms around her, and she laid her head on his shoulder. Quinn and Logan settled onto the bottom bunk, Logan closest to the wall. There didn't need to be any words. He pulled her close, and she settled back against his chest. Chase and Zoey scooted under the covers. They faced each other. Looking into each other's eyes and holding hands, they couldn't understand why their dream had to unfold during a nightmare.

**A/N: **

**Ladies and gents, I apologize for the lack of action. I don't want this to be a story that leaves unanswered questions. I want it to be clear how this is happening to them and why. This idea turned into something way different than I had anticipated, but I'm excited to see where it's going to go (Because even I don't know). **

**(This stuff about souls is completely made up btw)**

**Thank you to everyone for your unwavering support and loyal reading. As always, I am glad to hear your praise or criticism. I want nothing more than to be a better writer and give you the type of stories you want and deserve. :)**

**And on that note: I hate this chapter. Ohmigod I hate it so much. I hate it more than anything I've written so far. May the great writers in the universe forgive me for this piece of shit. **


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